23 November 2009
The Lawyer
7 Bedford Row makes annual chief exec switch
Common law set Seven Bedford Row has appointed its third chief executive in three years.
Addleshaws appoints consultancy mediators
Addleshaw Goddard has identified four partners to act as conduits between its core practice areas and the internal management consultancy launched by chairman Mark Jones earlier this year.
Advancing on the ceiling
Law firms are having a good look in the mirror in light of the EHRC’s inquiry into sex discrimination within the financial services sector. By Naomi Feinstein and Marian Bloodworth
Amarchand flies in UK talent as Mumbai COO
Indian firm Amarchand & Mangaldas & Suresh A Shroff & Co has turned to the UK legal market for the hire of a chief operating officer (COO) for the Mumbai region.
Ashurst hires RBS UK corporate head
Ashurst has hired the former head of RBS’s UK corporate and global restructuring legal team Lee Doyle as partner in its loan markets practice.
Ashurst sitting pretty as National Express rail saga rumbles on
The battle over the East Coast franchise just won’t go away. By Gavriel Hollander
Bank rucks
Iceland’s economic travails are well-documented. James Swift puts the spotlight on the effect to the country’s ranks of in-house counsel
BPP parent Apollo Group in SEC accounting probe
For-profit educator’s business model under scrutiny
Bristows returns to 2Birds for IT partner
Bristows has made its second raid in three months on technology rival Bird & Bird, hiring IT partner Hazel Grant.
CC promotes support staff from India to associate
Clifford Chance has taken the unprecedented step of hiring two lawyers from its Indian legal support centre as associates in the LLP.
Clydes and Shadbolt lay foundations for merger
Construction boutique Shadbolt Law has completed a strategic review that has ended with the firm looking to tie up with EC3 giant Clyde & Co.
Danish doubles
In a usually quiet legal market a spate of mergers has shaken things up and created a brand-new mid-tier competitor. Tom Phillips reports
Defame and fortunes
Be it the world of football, headhunting or banking, actions from former employees for stigma due to the actions of an employer are making a comeback. Ann Bevitt and Suzanne Horne provide some salutary examples
Dig the new Swede
The Swedish legal market has become a hotbed of change as lawyers switch firms and gain the confidence to launch spin-offs. By James Swift
DLA scoops all Kraft work (but not hostile bids)
DLA Piper has been appointed by Kraft Foods as its new preferred adviser for all international day-to-day work in a first for the multinational company.
Education: a bad business?
It’s hard to escape the suspicion that legal education is becoming a soap opera. It has all the required elements: a closed community, loads of bitching, a dollop of social realism - and my, here’s the obligatory cliffhanger.
First LPO conference creates debate
Leah Cooper has become something of a celebrity in legal circles. A few months ago she noticed that the team she runs in her capacity as managing attorney at global mining company Rio Tinto was overburdened with menial tasks. But she was unable to justify recruiting further staff in the current economic climate.
Focus: Bristows: Hard drive
Bristows’ Mark Watts has a battle on his hands to convince the market his ‘IP boutique’ is also a serious IT contender. But he’s coming out fighting
Foil wraps up first chief exec appointment
Lobby group the Forum of Insurance Lawyers (Foil) has appointed Laurence Besemer as its first chief executive.
French and Spanish firms aim to give Gide a run for its money in Morocco
Morocco may be pushing hard for UK investors, but it is the French and Spanish firms that are making their mark on the emerging region.
Healthy attitude: Louise Guss, Care Quality Commission
Leading the legal arm of the UK’s health and social regulator is a tough ask, but one that Louise Guss answers admirably. By Luke McLeod-Roberts
Herbies gears up for three-way senior partner battle
When they turn up to vote next month for who they want to lead their firm for the next five years, Herbert Smith partners will be faced with an unprecedented choice of practice representation. Will they want a partner hailing from competition (Jonathan Scott), corporate (Allen Hanen) or litigation (Tim Parkes)?
Herbies looks to Gatehouse GC to bulk up Saudi finance
Herbert Smith has hired Gatehouse Capital general counsel Adil Hussain for its Saudi finance practice.
Howard Kennedy in online commercial property sale
Howard Kennedy, LG and Martin Shepherd & Co have acted on the groundbreaking online exchange of a commercial property.
Injunction against Channel 4 thrown out
An injunction application that found its way to the High Court without proceedings being issued has been thrown out.
InterLaw offers 'Helping Hand' to charities
Law firm lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender network the InterLaw Diversity Forum has launched a new pro bono and community service initiative called ‘Helping Hands’ (H2).
Kalo & Associates
“For 25 years we didn’t really have a legal practice in Albania because the state thought it was best that prosecutors also advised the defendant,” says Përparim Kalo, managing partner at Kalo & Associates. “So lawyers weren’t really needed until 1991, when a new bill established the Ministry of Justice.”
McClures goes after concert promoter for fees
Scottish firm McClure Naismith has launched a High Court claim against concert promoter Mark Lundquist in a row over unpaid fees.
Opinion: Knowledge management needs serious consideration
If there is anyone out there who still thinks knowledge management (KM) is a backroom research function, the current economic climate should surely be encouraging them to think again. If KM is to survive in the new world, it needs to shape up.
People moves
Lewis Silkin has taken on Ellen Temperton as a partner in the firm’s employment and incentives department.
Quintain calls on Nabarro to advise on resurrected £191m rights issue
Ashurst and Nabarro have bagged advisory roles on property developer Quintain’s £191m rights issue.
Round two: STV guns for ITV over rights sold to BT, Virgin
Herbert Smith partner Alan Watts has instructed One Essex Court barrister Emma Himsworth to represent STV in its £12m dispute with ITV over new media rights.
Shepherds brings in second recent lateral
Shepherd and Wedderburn has made its second lateral partner hire in as many months, with Guy Harvey joining its commercial dispute resolution practice.
Sidley launches London dispute resolution group
Sidley Austin is formally launching a London dispute resolution practice three years after it first launched a contentious team in the City.
Six-month financials show promising market
The first half of the 2009-10 financial year has provided a mixed bag of results for law firm revenues, but some stability seems to have returned to the market.
Tulkinghorn: Reed Smith’s Creationists
At Reed Smith it’s not all about slashing pay or asking lawyers to stump up cash to be a partner, you know. The lawyers in the London office at least have been giving something back - and not just to their firm.
US firms get tough on pay
Skadden follows Cravath with slashed bonuses as Reed Smith ditches lockstep
William Grant distils legal role
?The General counsel at William Grant & Sons Eva Bishop has left the company following a review by the distillers of its executive function.
Work Life Quiz: Catherine Hallam, Burges Salmon
What’s your favourite film?Local Hero.
